Reaching People Where They Live: Columbia Launches Novel Eye Care Study in NYC Affordable Housing Buildings

Lisa and resident

12/2020

Thousands of individuals who live in New York City’s public housing developments will receive free vision screenings, eye glasses, and essential follow-up eye care, all within their own apartment complex, as part of a new community-based initiative headed by Columbia Department of Ophthalmology researchers and funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Manhattan Vision Screening and Follow-Up Study in Vulnerable Populations is a 5-year, randomized controlled trial, open to any New York City resident over 40 years of age living independently in one of ten adult and senior housing buildings owned by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), one of Columbia’s partners for the study.